SHAFAQNA-Iranian missile strike in Syria earlier this month was aimed in part at liquidating Daesh leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, but he survived just because of his chanceful lateness to the meeting of militant commanders.

Jabbar al-Maamouri, leader of paramilitary group al-Hashd al-Shaabi, said to Iraqi News that “The Iranian shelling against specific pockets of Islamic State, east of Euphrates in Syria, using missiles few days ago, targeted an important meeting for the so-called Islamic State’s war council, to which Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was on way”.

Al-Baghdadi survived just because of his chanceful lateness to the meeting but the attack had still been a success as they killed al-Baghdadi’s deputy who was set to take over leadership of ISIS.

The shadowy Daeshterrorist leader has been rumored to be hiding out on the Syrian-Iraqi border since May, and had been reported killed or incapacitated by US or Russian air and artillery strikes on multiple occasions, with none of the reports ever being confirmed, Sputnik reported.